Interview Prep is Just Practicing a Fake Self-Introduction

Companies say, “We can do everything.” They write as if growth, stability, fulfillment, and work-life balance all exist simultaneously. Applicants say, “I’ll do anything.” They erase their strengths and weaknesses to play the part of an infinitely flexible resource.

In other words, both sides are erasing their own information to increase the probability of a match. The more information you strip from your self-introduction, the easier it becomes to get a job offer. And since two people devoid of information are shaking hands, a bad match isn’t an accident—it’s inevitable. It is the handshake of one empty box with another.

Furthermore, “interview prep” is simply practicing this lie. Polishing your answers to anticipated questions means shaving down your own edges and contours to fit the mold of the other party. The system itself teaches misrepresentation. Even though no one is a “bad person,” an equilibrium has been established where everyone gives a fake self-introduction. You can look for a villain, but you won’t find one. You simply have to accept that this is how the mechanism works.

Try erasing every unverifiable line from the job posting in front of you. “Opportunity for growth,” “Open communication,” “Young talent thrives”—once you black out the lines of promise, only the lines of fact remain. Salary, location, and the specific nouns describing the duties. Do the same with your own lines from the interview. Erase “I resonate with your philosophy,” and “It’s close to my house” remains. The number of lines left after the erasure is the actual substance of that paper.

A correct self-introduction isn’t a matter of how you embellish it. It’s a matter of the materials used. It cannot be written with desires; it can only be written with records. From now on, for both the other person’s paper and my own words, I only need to read the lines of fact.